The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County

A Novel

De: Claire Swinarski

Narrado por: Alexander Cendese, Alexandra Hunter, Ann Richardson

Armed with a Crock-Pot and a pile of recipes, a grandmother, her granddaughter, and a mysterious young man work to bring a community together in this uplifting novel for fans of The Chicken Sisters.

Esther Larson has been cooking for funerals in the Northwoods of Wisconsin for seventy years. Known locally as the “funeral ladies,” she and her cohort have worked hard to keep the mourners of Ellerie County fed—it is her firm belief that there is very little a warm casserole and a piece of cherry pie can’t fix. But, after falling for an internet scam that puts her home at risk, the proud Larson family matriarch is the one in need of help these days.

Iris, Esther’s whip-smart Gen Z granddaughter, would do anything for her family and her community. As she watches her friends and family move out of their lakeside town onto bigger and better things, Iris wonders why she feels so left behind in the place she is desperate to make her home. But when Cooper Welsh shows up, she finally starts to feel like she’s found the missing piece of her puzzle.

Cooper is dealing with becoming a legal guardian to his younger half-sister after his beloved stepmother dies. While their celebrity-chef father is focused on his booming career and top-ranked television show, Cooper is still hurting from a public tragedy he witnessed last year as a paramedic and finding it hard to cope. With Iris in the gorgeous Ellerie County, though, he hopes he might finally find the home he’s been looking for.

It doesn’t seem like a community cookbook could possibly solve their problems, especially one where casseroles have their own section and cream of chicken soup mix is the most frequently used ingredient. But when you mix the can-do spirit of Midwestern grandmothers with the stubborn hope of a boy raised by food plus a dash of long-awaited forgiveness—things might just turn out okay.

Includes Recipes

©2024 Claire Swinarski (P)2024 HarperCollins Publishers

Not the best book I’ve ever read, but somewhat enjoyable.

I’ve read many novels that I like more than this book but it definitely was an enjoyable enough story for me to get through the whole book. I found myself invested and interested in the characters and how everything would resolve in the story. It’s funny but the book really wasn’t about the funeral ladies as much as one of the funeral ladies family and some visitors to the town. So I would give it a pretty average rating.

Charming and delightful

I loved the characters and the way the author developed them. As a Catholic, I loved all the Catholic references.

Cute Story

This is a cute story with some heavy subjects. There was humor, sadness and just a heartwarming story.

Loved it!

Loved this book! such a great storyline. I can totally see this being an amazing movie.

best family story

the characters and situations portrayed real life. it dealt with issues of aging and ptsd.

Nice easy read

I enjoyed this read. There were a few wonderful glimpses along the way, but I would have liked those to be expanded some. But a nice read. And certainly had one considering the beauty and strength of life in the Midwest.

All the things about WI I could relate to!!

I didn't care for all the F bombs or the use of Waukegan, (that's not in WI).

Northwoods near Waukegan?

Nope! One needs to be north of Rhinelander to qualify. Sweet story, but predictable and kinda sappy. If you want a light read, here you be!